The People we Love
by SorryZurie
Summary: To most he's terrifying, but to Alex he's a work in progress. Can Alex learn to handle the duties of being a witch, her love for Klaus, and all the danger that surrounds baby Hope? Or will his world consume her to the point of no return? Most main characters will be featured. This story will show a softer but still terrifying side to Klaus.
1. Chapter 1

"Alexandra Marshall you have _got_ to find a way out of the city." My mom warned me as I swept the floor of the tea house. "That Davina girl is no Queen Regent. She ain't gunna bring nothing but death to our people." I rolled my eyes briefly, trying to ignore her the best I could. "Don't you roll your eyes at me young lady. I _know_ what I'm talking about."

I stopped sweeping to look her in the eyes. She sat at a table fanning herself with a menu. "Mama, give the girl a chance. She's gone up against two Mikaelsons and survived. She's tougher than she looks."

She scoffed at me. "That child ain't nothing but angry. Our ancestors have been showing me signs, if she leads us the outcome won't be pretty."

I placed the broom against the wall and sat down with her. Clutching her hand, I squeezed lightly. "You keep saying how bad it will be, but you aren't saying that you'll come with me. Mama if I go away what's going to happen to you? Who's going to look after you?" She swatted the question away with her free hand. "I'm not going anywhere."

I got back up and began to put the chairs onto the tables. Each day for the last three years, ever since she had the heart attack, I'd been coming in the mornings to help open and in the evenings to help close. "Alex, please just consider it."

"I can't leave you here by yourself mama."

"I have lived my life, whatever happens to me next will just have to happen. But you have _so_ much of yours left to live. You have to pass along our family's legacy and if you stay in New Orleans it'll never happen. Not with the way the vampires and werewolves have been acting."

I didn't want to talk about it anymore. I didn't want to think about actually leaving her behind. Part of me has wanted to leave Louisiana since the day I discovered that I'm a witch. Still, it's my home. And running away from home has never been something I could see myself doing. "It's getting late. Why don't you go on upstairs and sleep. I'll finish up down here and then I'll see you in the morning."

"Not tomorrow morning, the tea house will be closed. We have to go pledge our allegiance with Davina."

I raised an eyebrow at her. "But you just said you didn't trust her as the Queen Regent."

She pushed down on the table to help herself out of the chair. "Correct, but just like _every_ body else we have to play this smart." She gave me a kiss on the cheek before passing me. "Thank you for closing up sweetie. Get home safely."

I laughed a little. "Goodnight mama." I spent the next twenty minutes putting up chairs and counting the register. When I was done I left out of the front door, locking it behind me. Although it was only eight thirty, the streets were already filled with bar goers. I didn't live too far away from the tea house so I had decided to walk home instead of catching a bus.

The night air was cool against my bear arms and legs. The summer heat was coming to an end as fall slowly began to approach. I didn't see him standing in front of me until I bumped into him. "Good evening Alexandra." Klaus stood in front of me just as charismatic as ever.

I side stepped around him and continued walking home. "Whatever this is that you're getting ready to do, stop." I barely spoke out, still I knew he could hear me. Whenever I saw him, no matter how brief, my heart rate always seemed to increase. Just as it did the very first night I encountered him.

"Have we already gotten to that point in our friendship?" I glanced over at him. He was smiling his wicked half smile. His blue eyes gleaming in the glow of the street lamps.

"Yes, we have in fact." He chuckled.

Keeping pace with me he began, "Well that's always good to know." God. Why did he have to have such a sexy accent? "Anyhow, I must ask a favor of you."

I stopped walking. "No." He stopped as well and stood in front of me. Although he was still smiling, the smile didn't quite reach his eyes anymore. I knew that I had to word everything carefully now. "Three years ago my mom got caught up in the feud between vampires and witches— _against_ her will. And it nearly killed her." I made sure to emphasize that point. He stood their respectfully listening, but the thing with Klaus was that I could never tell just how much was getting through to him. "So I left college and moved back to New Orleans to help her. And the minute I did that… you came along. Threatening and forcing me to do things with magic I have _never_ wanted to do."

"Alex—" His voice was soft but still I cut him off.

I continued to speak with my hand raised for a moment. "But what's even worse is that in the middle of it all you started showing actual signs of affection towards me. One minute you were warm and inviting and opening up to me, then the next you were this—this monster." I took a deep breath. "So no Klaus. You don't have the privilege or right to ask me for favors anymore." For what seemed like the longest minute, we stood in silence.

He wouldn't look me directly in the eyes. He held his head low and his gaze shifted often; it was almost like he was ashamed. "I know that I can be—difficult." I huffed a bit at that and he finally looked at me. "But I'm _trying_. You're a good person; you always see the inherently good in others. What do you see when you look at me?"

I tried not to let the fact that he was getting emotional cloud my judgement. I had heard the stories of the dreaded Niklaus Mikaelson. "I see goodness buried deep underneath a thousand years of malice. And I don't really think a few months spent with me can bring it back to the surface. That kind of thing takes serious time." We stood again in silence until I broke it. "Look, I'm exhausted. Can I please just go home?"

Without looking at me or verbally answer, he shook his head yes and stepped aside for me to continue walking. I counted the steps in my head, waiting for him to grab me against my will and dart away like he'd done so many times before. But he never did. "I understand your frustrations with me." He spoke out loud enough for me to hear over the group of people shouting just a little further down the street. I stopped walking again, but I didn't turn around to face him. "I'm a difficult man to tolerate. But you've been the only one to truly help me with Hope. I trust you Alex. You know her—condition unlike anyone else." His voice faltered. "I need your help."

I inhaled long and held it for a while before releasing the breath. I turned my head to the left and shouted back at him over my shoulder. "I'll help you." Then I turned enough to look at him. "For Hope's sake." His expression brightened. "First thing tomorrow morning."

"Thank you."

"Goodnight Klaus." I shouted. This time I didn't stop walking. I walked all the way home never looking over my shoulder. I had enough faith in him to leave me be. As I entered my apartment I tried not to think about what happened the last time I decided to help Klaus. I tried not to think about what my mom would say if she ever found out about any of it. But more importantly I tried not to think about how she would see me if she knew that I was in love with an Original.


	2. Chapter 2

All throughout the night I had difficulty sleeping. When I finally managed to fall asleep it hardly made a difference. Waking up was a struggle. My eyes were heavy and my body felt weak. Still, I pulled myself out of bed and got ready for the day. My hair hung wet and down to the middle of my back. The curls and coils of my hair meshing together to create one dark and uniform shape. After checking in with my mom about what time Davina's ceremony was, I discovered I had at most three hours to help Klaus. I arrived at his doorstep, nerves causing havoc. Before I could ring the bell, he emerged from the inside. "Alexandra." He spoke delicately.

I stood there in front of him fidgeting with my hands. "You look surprised to see me." He stepped aside to let me in. "I told you I'd help." Whenever I stepped foot into his home I felt the overwhelming sensation of despair. So much had happened in this house over the years and the energy from it all lingered through its walls. I took a long look around.

He followed close behind me; even though he wasn't right behind me I could still feel his presence. The knowing of his presence sent a flash of high energy through my body. "Is it a bad thing that you surprise me?" I turned to face him, he was smiling boyishly.

"It has been in the past." I reminded him. Before things had the chance to turn sour, I cleared my throat. "So where's Hope?" Klaus pointed up the stairs. I took the lead. "How has she been?"

"Her magic has progressed greatly. And when she's angry—" he didn't bother to finish his sentence. I could tell how worried he was for her. But worrying this much wouldn't be any good to the situation.

I looked over my shoulder just as I made it to the top step. "Like father like daughter." I replied with a wink. "I never had the _pleasure_ of meeting Dahlia; but if any of what she said about Hope is true then she needs a mentor so to speak." I walked into her nursery and found her inside her crib playing with a teething ring. "There she is." I beamed. Picking her up, I gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "She's getting so _big._ " I exclaimed.

Klaus stood near the door with his hands behind his back. He looked so awkward standing there. "Yes, she is." He smiled lightly.

"The uh—full moon is in three days." I reminded him, even though I doubt he needed it. "Have you checked on how Hayley's doing out there in the Bayou?" I knew this was a touchy subject for him, but it had to be discussed. Hayley was Hope's mother. And in all the time I'd spent with Klaus none of it was focused on a way to break her from the spell Dahlia put on her. Klaus stood in front of me on edge. "She's her _mother_ Klaus."

"If you're going to spend your time lecturing me then you might as well just leave." His voice was low; he wasn't quite angry, but he also wasn't content.

I cradled Hope in my arms and cut the distance between us. "Hey, I'm _all_ for single parenting—when it's necessary. My dad ran out on me and my mom; but Hope has two parents who love her immensely. It's not fair to her."

"She hasn't even turned one yet." Klaus snapped. "Must we talk about this now?" He stepped closer. Not even a full foot away from me. The electricity that surged between the two of us was unreal. I forced myself to focus on Hope's breathing. My powers as a witch dealt a lot with energies and auras. No matter how hard I tried to convince myself that there's nothing between he and I, my powers told me otherwise. It made everything that much harder.

I inhaled Hope's sweet sent, turned and walked away from him to the window in the room. It had a great view of their never ending backyard. Tall grass grew along the tree line. The plantation house sat on a few acres and when the sun shined down on it all it was truly mesmerizing. "You need someone to help Hope understand her magic. Right now she's going off of raw emotions. The most important thing is to help her calm down when she's angry." I looked back at Klaus who hadn't moved from his spot. "You can't get upset when she's upset. It'll only fuel the flames."

"Okay." This time he cut the distance. He stood just behind me, admiring his baby girl. His chest brushed slightly against the back of my shoulder. "She always seems so at peace when you hold her." He whispered. "She's never like that with me."

Turning my head a little, I looked him in the eyes. He was so close, but as clichéd it may sound he was still so distant. "You've never had to care for a child before Klaus. It's to be expected that it won't come naturally."

He laughed a bit and let Hope grasp his pinky finger. "You know sometimes brutal honesty _isn't_ always the best kind of honesty." I rolled my eyes and handed off Hope to him. I helped guide his hands to the best spots for holding her. "Thank you."

"It's no problem." Hope wiggled in his arms before finally settling into his chest. "I think she's sleepy. Why don't you sit with her while I go get something to drink?" I gave her another peck on the cheek then headed for the kitchen. On my way I bumped into Elijah. "Oh, hey."

"Hello Alexandra. I didn't know we'd be expecting you." He walked with me to the kitchen.

I grabbed a glass from the cabinet and filled it with lemon water. If it were up to them their fridge would be bare, but luckily Cami visited frequently. She made sure they kept it stocked with human food. "Klaus asked me to help with Hope so here I am." I never really spent much time with Elijah. Most of the time he wasn't even around, but whenever he was I could sense a lot of resentment around him. "So how are you doing?" I hadn't meant for it to sound too concerned, but that's the way it came out.

He stood up straight and tucked his hands in his suit pockets. "Better. If you don't mind me asking, what is it exactly do you think you can do to help Hope?"

Unsure of whether or not Klaus would still be able to hear me, I whispered my reply. "I plan to help him become more sure of himself when he's around her. With Hope's powers growing constantly, she needs someone to keep her tethered. And because her bond with her mother has been temporarily broken—Klaus needs to be that tether. I'm just here to coach him through it really."

Elijah furrowed his brow for a moment. "I see." He didn't sound even remotely pleased. "As much as I want to believe my brother can be what Hope needs, I can't quite see that being possible."

I took a sip from my glass and leaned against the counter top. "You shouldn't be so discouraging and doubtful. What Dahlia did to Hayley is unquestionably terrible, but Klaus needs you with him now more than ever." He opened his mouth to speak but closed it once more. "What?"

Slowly, as if he were choosing his words carefully, he began. "It's extremely honorable that you can seem to see the good in my brother, but perhaps you should ask him more about what happened to Hayley."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"It's not my place to discuss it. I suppose when Niklaus is ready to tell you, he will. However you should know that there's much more to the story than you've been told. If you'll excuse me, I have some business to attend to downtown. It was nice seeing you again."

I didn't say goodbye. My mind was still wrapped around what he'd just told me. There was more to the story, what more could there be? I thought I knew it all. I finished the rest of my water and headed back upstairs. Klaus sat embracing Hope in his arms in the rocking chair in the far left corner of the room. When I entered the doorframe he looked up from his daughter to smile at me. "She's drifting asleep." He whispered.

I smiled frivolously. "I have to get going." I whispered back. It was a lie; I could have stayed another two hours. But I wouldn't have known what to do or say. Elijah was right. If there was more to the story Klaus clearly wasn't ready to tell me. And I didn't want to risk whatever would happen if I pressed him about it. So instead I waved goodbye and left.


	3. Chapter 3

**{{{[[[[[Fairly short chapter, but it still has some important plot building information! Enjoy.]]]}}}**

* * *

I met with my mom outside of the cemetery. Many witches and warlocks had already arrived, many of them from different covens. "What's that?" I asked her. She was holding a large black woven basket.

She patted it three times and smiled. "This is to ensure we're on good terms with Davina." She then opened the lid to reveal that it was full of herbs and dirt and stones. "It's our duty, all of our duty, to welcome her into our covens."

We followed behind in a line of over a hundred people; I had never seen the cemetery so packed. "What do you mean welcome here into our coven?" I whispered. "Is that going to give her access to our power or something?"

My mom glared at me, clearly disappointed. "Honestly Alex, you go away for a few years and you act like you have no idea about our traditions." She sighed momentarily. "Davina is officially becoming our Queen Regent. And as Queen Regent she has the right to each coven's source of power. How else is she to maintain the peace between us all?" At that moment I noticed people holding on to boxes or bags. "I call your place about an hour ago, but you didn't pick up. Where were you?"

"Running." I lied. Before she or I could say anything else we were both approached by someone I'd never seen before. She was old and brittle, her hair blending from grey to sugar white.

She stood in front of me and my mom. "What's your denomination?" Her voice was hoarse.

"Denomination?" I echoed confused.

"Louisiana earth hoodoo." My mom replied proudly.

The woman, who still hadn't given us her name, smiled quickly. "Alright you'll be to the right of Davina among the other earth bound witches." We followed headed in the same direction her hand was pointing and found a spot with the others. We waited for about another thirty minutes, casually talking with each other, and then it began. Davina emerged from a crypt in a flowy black gown and her hair pulled back into a bun. I'd never actually seen her before and the sight of how young she really was caused my mouth to open a bit.

There were lots of speeches, one from the head of each coven. I listened to my mom give a speech on behalf of her late sister and my late aunt. It was short and sweet and I could tell it was resurfacing a lot of emotions for her. And when she was done she presented our gift to Davina. "Thank you Florentine." Davina smiled at her and at me. It was weird calling us a coven when there was only us two. My mom always said there should have been more, but she never explained what she meant by that. After the last speech, Davina stood up from her chair and held both hands above her head to silence the cheering. "A year ago I was known as the failed harvest girl, but to most of you I was known as a traitor to my own kind. I sided with the vampires, something at the time I thought was the right thing to do. But since then I have learned that in order for us to thrive-we have to stick together." Davina's voice echoed throughout the quiet cemetery as we all listened. "We hold the magical balance and yet we get no respect. Well I say no more. No more fearing vampires and werewolves, because if it weren't for us they wouldn't be here. As your Queen Regent I promise to restore our respect. You all have my word that our covens will never live in fear again."

A few people began to clap and then suddenly the whole place was uproar with applause. "That sounded more like a declaration of war than a thank you speech." I leaned over to my mom and whispered. She didn't verbally reply, but she did nod her head in agreement. Once the applause finally came to an end we were all encouraged to go to a woman named Mable's house for a potluck to finish off the ceremony. We decided not to go and instead grabbed a late lunch at a nearby bistro. It was fairly empty and allowed us to speak freely. "That was interesting."

"Mhm," she replied before taking a sip of her lemonade.

I thought to myself for a moment about what declaring war on the vampires and werewolves really meant. It meant putting my mom in another position to hurt herself. "Did you get the same feeling from the crowd. I mean even though people clapped for her-no one really seemed moved by her speech."

She sat back in her seat. "That's because no one is a stupid as they really look." We both laughed briefly. "No one wants a war we've all been there and done that. No thanks to her."

I took that into consideration before responding. "But she's Queen Regent. If she wants to wage war, she can."

"Davina is a child, sweetheart. She may be known as Queen Regent, but she doesn't have any real power over the community. The only people you have to worry about are the elders. If they wanted to start a war then and only then should you start to panic." Our waiter came over to take our orders. "Two Caesar salads?"

I shook my head yes in approval. We waited for him to be out of earshot before continuing. "Okay, if Davina doesn't really have any control over the covens why give her access to each individual coven's magic?"

"It's tradition." She replied.

I thought about that for a second. It didn't seem smart or right. "So basically everything is for show. How much of a bond do we all really have with each other if everything we do is practically all just fake gestures of acceptance?" I watched my mom shrug her shoulders. "Regardless of how real or fake it is, Davina has access to our magic, to everyone's magic, whatever hell-bent mission she's on she could use it to help her."

This time she sighed. "I know that. The best thing for us to do is to play things as close to the ground as possible and keep as much distance between us and the vampires as possible." My hands tensed under the table. If only she knew what I'd been up to for the past couple of months. "I'm not too much worried about the wolves, they like to keep to themselves mostly." Our salads arrived and we finally gave up all talk of the supernatural. We spent the rest of our time eating discussing things we could do around the shop to increase foot traffic. After lunch we parted ways. I headed for my apartment, I could have gone back to help Klaus with Hope. But I finally decided to take my mom's advice, maybe the best thing for me was to actually avoid him.


	4. Chapter 4

_Weeks had gone past and I had managed to avoid Klaus with the help of a disappearing spell. To him or anyone he sought help in would not be able to find me. I know I promised to help Hope, but ever since Davina's ceremony and what my mom told me about a potential war happening, I needed to be by myself. What's more, I couldn't help but wonder about the things Elijah told me. Which is what led me to the middle of the Bayou in the dead of night in search of Hayley. I needed answers and I knew I'd get true ones from her._

The moon was high in the sky, full and bright. Its light casting shadows throughout the trees that surrounded me. I sat in the moist dirt and prepared the locator spell to find Hayley. With every unknown sound that floated through the air an uncertainty roamed around in my mind. "Utor te luna ad reperio te lupus hybrida", I began chanting as I used the energy of the full moon to ignite the candles that surrounded the map placed before me. Sprinkling soil from the Bayou onto the center of the map, I continued to chant and waited for me to show me her path.

Just as the soil began to illustrate at path, the sound of a twig snapping distracted me. The candles blew out and fear flooded my mind. "What are you doing out here?" A husky male voice spoke out from somewhere I couldn't see. I stood up immediately, prepared to defend myself. "This is private property."

"I didn't see any signs saying so." I replied. Scanning all around me, I searched for the source of the voice, but found nothing. "Come out of the shadows." I commanded strongly.

"What's your business here?" He countered more aggressively. I had no idea who or _what_ I was up against. Wolves typically occupied the Bayou, but who's to say it wasn't just another vampire preying on unassuming campers.

I stood my ground, "my business is my business. I won't bother you and you won't bother me." I heard him laugh a little. And then out of nowhere he emerged from the darkness. "Oh Jesus." He stood in front of me completely naked with just a piece of rotting tree bark covering himself. "Sorry!" I looked away immediately.

I listened to him walk past me and across to the other side of the small clearing. "You wouldn't leave. I know you're a witch, and I'm assuming you've now realized that I'm a werewolf. My clothes are over here." I stood there in awe. "Alright, I'm decent."

I turned back around to face him. "Again, I'm so sorry." I could feel the warmth surfacing in my face. Completely flustered I still focused my eyesight on the ground. "I, uh—had no idea this was actually private property. I can leave." I started collecting the candles and map and shoving them into the backpack I brought along with me.

"What's your name?"

"What's yours?" I shot back. Mostly peaceful or not, werewolves weren't witches. It was more difficult to read their true intentions.

"Jackson," he replied confidently. Suddenly the name rang out in my head. Klaus had occasionally mentioned his name out of distaste. "I told you mine, now it's your turn."

"Alexandra. Jackson—you know Hayley right?"

"Why?" His voice was guarded.

I held up a hand, "I'm a friend. Don't worry. I was out here doing a locator spell on her. I have some questions about the curse Dahlia put on her. I just wanted to hear things from her side."

He stared at me for a few minutes without speaking. Finally the silence between us lifted. "Her side? Whose side _have_ your heard?"

"Klaus'." I watched as Jackson's chest puffed up. "Which is why I need to hear her side of things."

"I was there, I know what happened." He ran a hand through is long dark hair. "Before the night is over, I'll tell you."

I stared at him confused, "why not now?" I watched as he paced the clearing back and forth. "Hello? Jackson?"

Without stopping or looking at me, he answered. "You shouldn't have needed a locator spell. This is where Hayley and I meet each full moon before we go to see Hope." I raised an eyebrow. What were the chances? "She usually gets here before I do."

"Maybe she couldn't wait?" I offered him, I could sense the anxiety building inside of him. "It has been a whole month."

He shook his head no. "I doubt it. Something is up for sure. You think you could finish that spell?" I nodded my head and put everything back into place and began the spell again. "There were hunters around this area earlier this month. I thought Elijah got rid of them all."

"—I can't do this without concentration." I pointed out.

"My bad." He replied before letting me have the silence and focus I needed. It was difficult with him hovering over me, but I finally got the trail of soil moving again.

The longer the trial got the harder it was for me to follow. "Something isn't right—ouch!" A sharp pain struck at the temples of my forehead. I closed my eyes and tried to get rid of it. It wouldn't leave until I stopped the spell. "Someone's blocking me from completely the spell."

"Klaus?" I shrugged my shoulders. "Elijah?" Jackson's voice elevated. The anger spilling from his mouth.

I looked over my shoulder. "Jackson, I don't know." I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. "The only way to eliminate the two from being possible is to head over to them and check if she's there."

I blew out the candles and put everything away for good. Jackson stood tensely in front of me. "We don't have much time, she could be anywhere." I nodded in agreement. "You check with Klaus and I'll search the Bayou some more. Whatever you find, meet me back here—exactly—just before sunrise." I agreed and made my way back to where I parked my car. I really wanted to help ease Jackson's worry, but I hadn't been in contact with Klaus in weeks. To him, it were as if I'd died. _That_ ' _s_ how much of a ghost I had become. But if I ever wanted to hear what really happened to Hayley and the rest of the wolves, coming face to face with Klaus would have to happen.


	5. Chapter 5

I sat in my car on the street just outside of his home, gripping the steering wheel. I'd been like this for about twelve minutes. I knew I had to go in eventually, still I couldn't physically force myself out of the car. "Get a grip Alex. What is the worst he could do to you? It's not like he's going to kill you. –He's just going to be really, really… _really_ angry." Closing my eyes I inhaled a few deep breaths and exhaled them slowly. With my eyes still closed I released myself from the steering wheel and unlocked my seatbelt.

The muffled sound of Klaus' voice struck me to my core. "Alex." He was standing just outside my car door, his green eyes gazing in through the window. He tapped on the window and finally I had no choice but to get out.

"Klaus," I began shakily. There was a knot in my stomach and a lump in my throat. I couldn't bear to look him in the eyes. So instead, I stared down at the pavement. "Hi."

"She lives." His voice was dry, not a bit of humor to his words. But as terribly terrifying as he sounded, one thing scared me even more. His aura was gone. There was no light around him even if it were just grey and dull, his light was gone. "You've been gone for over a month. You said you would help me with Hope and then you disappeared."

"Hope has a—" he cut me off.

"I've compelled a dozen men to search for you. I thought you were dead. I—", he stopped speaking for a moment and I finally gathered the strength to look him in the eyes. They were strong and powerful, but also vulnerable. "I thought you were dead, Alex." This time his voice was soft, forgiving even. Just as I was about to speak he began again. "But here you are! Perfectly healthy and I'm assuming aware of doing! So what is it then?" I stepped even closer to me. "Why have you _finally_ decided to show your face to me?"

He was angry and I was scared. I clenched my fists and stiffened my stance. "I needed time to figure things out. I needed time away."

"Away from me? If you needed space you could have just asked love. There's no need in faking your own death over it! I would have given you space, but what about Hope? You're perfectly okay with abandoning her I see."

I hated listening to him making me feel guiltier. "I'm not Hope's mother! She has a mother, who could be here for her every day. Look I didn't come to argue. I'll admit that what I did could have been executed differently."

He stared at me intently. "Then why did you come?"

"Is Hayley here? Jackson's worried about her and I think—"

Klaus stormed away then turned back around to face me. "Why is everyone so concerned with the whereabouts of the woman who tried to take _my_ child away from me? The woman who conspired with my own brother to put me down and lock me away?" He seemed a bit hysterical. "Elijah already asked this question tonight and I'll give you the same answer I gave him. I haven't seen the girl." I stood there, trying to assess whether or not he was telling me the truth. "I find it rather amusing that the same girl that supposed to be such a devoted mother to Hope, hasn't even shown her face yet. On the one night she can."

"She'd have more than just one night if you were actually trying to find a way to lift the spell on her and the wolves. But then you'd have to deal with the fact that it would never just be you and Hope again." I closed my eyes momentarily and inhaled deeply before continuing. "I have to get going." Opening my eyes I watched as he stood before me and stared me down. The silence between us was numbing and I still couldn't see his aura. "I'll see you later Klaus."

"You say that, but I'm sure you'll fall off the face of the earth again." He mumbled. I didn't want to respond, I couldn't respond, and so I slid back into my car and ignited the engine. There wasn't much more I could say at this point without crossing boundary lines and the night was running out, I had to get back to Jackson.

I waited for about forty minutes before he showed up. "I take it she wasn't there?" He asked defeated. I shook my head no and tried not to let the disappointment I felt show on my face. "Dammit!"

"Hey," I began calmly. "I'm sure she's okay." I knew I couldn't fully sell the lie and so I tried again. "I know this must be out of character for her, but from what I've been told about her—Hayley is a brave and strong person. Wherever she is I'm sure she's holding her own."

Jackson sat down on a broken tree trunk with his head in his hands. "The sun's almost up, I was really banking on her being there with Hope." I didn't know exactly what to say, I didn't know if he'd want me to stay with him for his change back to wolf form. Truthfully, I didn't even know if it were safe to be there. So I just stood there a few feet away from him, awkwardly. Almost as if he could read my mind he answered my question. "This won't be pretty, Alex. You don't have to stick around for this."

"Um, it's okay really. I have nowhere to be. And who knows maybe she'll show up."

"Seriously. Just go." His voice was more agitated. I didn't want to argue, I'd had my share of arguing for the night. Nodding slightly in an attempt to say goodbye without actually saying anything at all, I turned away and headed back for my car. I still didn't have the answers _I_ was searching for, I'd just have to wait another month.


	6. Chapter 6

As I made my way back home and the sun began to rise up inch by inch in the sky, I couldn't help but worry about Hayley. But just as much as Hayley's whereabouts filled my mind; worry for both Hope and Klaus did as well. I tried assuring myself that Hope was okay the entire time. I'd taught Klaus more than enough to keep her powers under wraps. But knowing Klaus' temper that probably didn't do much. When I arrived home the sun was fully up and no longer hiding behind the horizon. My eyes felt heavy and my legs weak. "Great." I grumbled to myself after checking the clock on my phone. I had exactly four and a half hours to sleep before I would have to make my way down to the shop to help out for the day.

Somehow I managed to find my way to my bed and fall asleep. However, when I woke again it was seven at night and my mom was standing over me. "Called you six times today and they all went straight to your voicemail." She was angry.

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes, stretched my arms and legs, and then pulled myself up into a sitting position. "Wow, I'm really sorry Ma. I guess my phone died." My voice was thick and I did not sound like myself at all. "I had a pretty long night."

"Doing what?" She demanded while sitting down next to me on the edge of my bed.

I had to think quickly, "helping a friend out. Bad breakup." I watched as she rolled her eyes a little. "How did things at the shop go today?"

She sighed before reply. "Okay, I guess. You know it's getting close to Valentine's Day and so everyone's out buying these love spells and potions like they'll really do something." I sat there quietly and waited for her to get to the real point, because with her there always was one. "Stop looking at me like that, I didn't want anything." This was a change. "I was just worried. You weren't picking or returning any of my calls and with the way things are right now between the covens—"

Knowing there was more to it than just a concerned stop by, I cut her off. "What's going on between the covens?" I asked her, now suddenly completely awake. "Mom, what aren't you telling me?"

She wringed her hands in her lap, a habit out of nerves. "Davina was attacked today in the cemetery during some speech she was giving."

"Wait, what?" My eyes grew wide and I leaned closer to my mom. Her worry mixed with my shock created quite an interesting energy throughout the room. "What happened exactly?"

She looked me in the eyes. "I don't know and we shouldn't be talking about this. The further we stay out of _all_ drama the better. Drama never does this family any good." I wanted to know what she meant by that. I knew the surface of it, how Klaus had forced her to help him last year. But something made me believe there was more to it than that. "Alright, I'm going to get out of your hair now." She patted me on the leg and pushed off from the bed.

I followed her to my front door, "Mama, I really am sorry I couldn't help out today." She brushed it off and smiled at me. With my hand on the doorknob, I took a moment to look at her. "Are you sure there's nothing else bothering you?" Because she knew I could read her energy she knew how to deflect what she really felt. As I stared at her intently, trying to break through her shield, I suddenly realized she could probably read mine as well. So I dropped it. I didn't want her asking about why I was so bothered. "Never mind, I'll just see you tomorrow at eleven. I'll be there this time. I promise." Opening the door my heart jumped. "Klaus."

There was no trying to hide my surprise. It was written all over my face, flowed throughout the tone of my voice and etched itself in the position of my body. There was no hiding it whatsoever. "Alex." Klaus replied coolly. "Florentine." He added, knowing that it would only make things worse. I couldn't decide who to focus on; I kept shifting my gaze from him and her. They were standing off, shoulders squared and eyes trained on each other. "You look lovely."

Now was the time to intervene. "Klaus, what are you doing here?" I tried to wrangle the conversation. It didn't work.

My mother put a protective hand in front of me, gently pushing me behind her. "You're not welcome here." She spoke sternly. "Leave."

Klaus chuckled, amused at my mother's feeble attempt of dominance. "You see Florentine—" he began slowly. I knew what he was planning to do. Behind my mother I shook my head furiously no, begging him not to do it. "I know how much you'd _like_ to be right about that—" I mouthed his name voicelessly. Still pleading with him. I knew he could see me, I knew he could see me begging him, but that didn't mean anything to him. He took one step into my apartment and then another step. Although I couldn't see my mother's face I could feel her shock, pain, and betrayal. "But it appears I am welcome here." Klaus then looked over her head at me.

Without saying another word to me, my mother pushed past him and left my apartment. Now it was just Klaus and I. Standing in the quiet calm that always seemed to happen both before and after the storm. One storm had already passed, it was the discovery my mother just endured. But the next would be so much more deadly. The storm that was building between Klaus and I would be more terrifying than Hurricane Katrina. I could feel it festering inside of me, waiting to be let loose. The more I look him in the eyes, the longer he playfully smiled at me, the closer it got to being released. "You disgust me." I spat out at him with all the power my mortal bones could muster. The calm broke and hell was now unleased.


	7. Chapter 7

I didn't move, we stayed at the entry of my apartment. "Oh come now, it wasn't that big of a deal. Sooner or later she would find out." Klaus replied lightheartedly. "I'm actually a bit shocked you hadn't told her yet. Are you _ashamed_ to be my friend?"

"Yes!" I retorted. "I am ashamed! I'm ashamed that I let myself get sucked into your madness. You didn't have to do that. You could have just left. After everything you did to her, threatening her life, threatening _my_ life." His eyes grew wide, he obviously didn't know that I knew that. "You do all of these things, these horrible things because you can and somehow I forgive you for it all. Somehow I tell myself that you don't mean to do those things that someday you'll— open your eyes and realize how crappy of a person you are." I was flailing my hands around in the air. It was as if I had no control of my body.

Klaus' lips tightened to a hard line and then he spoke, "please continue—go on and heave more insults my way. Who doesn't love having that happen to them?" Still fuming I ignored his sarcasm bread from sadness. He didn't to be sad. Not now.

"Do you get what you've just done? Or does that just not matter to you?" I stared him in eyes. "You may not care about the relationships you hold between you and your siblings because you have an eternity with them. But my mom is the only family I've got left. She old and weak now thanks to you. I don't know how much time I have left with her, I'd rather not spend it trying to mend something that could have avoided being broken." I could sense the anger from him and I could feel it swirling around the two of us as it infused itself with my own anger.

"Don't presume to know anything about the relationships I hold with my family." He took a step forward. "How about you take responsibility for your actions Alex. You knowingly defied your mother's wishes of you."

Slamming the door of my apartment with my mind, I took a step closer to him. "Because you made me!" I shouted in his face. "Do you think I had a choice?"

"Of course you did!" He shouted back at me. "I never compelled you, everything that you've done is been by your free will. Let's not forget that one crucial detail Love." He and I both knew it was much more complicated than that. I had nothing else to say, so I screamed and shoved him away from me. It was the first time I'd ever physically attacked him. Of course it didn't do much; it just barely made him lose his balance and need to take a half step back on his right foot. I didn't even want to look at him, I headed towards the back of my apartment where my balcony was. I could hear him following behind me. I could have protested it, but he'd already shown me just how little my wants and needs meant to him. "Because you're so clearly upset, I'll let that moment of insanity you just had go this time."

I looked at him over my shoulder, irritation engraved on my face. Suddenly I had the urge to cause him physical pain, the same kind of pain that tore through me whenever I allowed myself to feel for him. I concentrated on his collar bone and watched as it broke. I listened to the unexpected pain ring out from his voice. And watched as half the bone jutted out of place, the skin still intact. "I'm sorry did that hurt?" I questioned wickedly.

With vampire speed I was pushed against the nearest wall, Klaus' arm holding me in place; his collar bone already fixed. "I wouldn't do that again if I were you."

"Why not?" I pressed. "Why not hurt you? You hurt dozens of people on a daily basis. Don't you think you deserve some of that pain?" Next, I broke his hand. He growled in anger and pain. "I did it again, what are you going to do?" _Snap,_ another bone broken.

"Alex!" He warned, but I did it again. The next time he looked at me his eyes were glowing bright and yellow.

"Do it! Kill me." I dared him, still pinned to the wall. There was something weighing on my mind, something that I never thought I'd have the courage to actually say. But in this moment, I had that courage and so I said it. "Kill me like you killed the rest of my coven. The rest of my family." I wasn't shouting anymore, my voice was much weaker but the ferocity was still there. I waited for him to object, to tell me he hadn't done that, but he didn't. And so—once and for all—I knew he was too blame. I couldn't control the tears, I thought I could hold them back and remain hard and steely like him. I was wrong. "I knew it." I whispered.

"Al—" I didn't let him finish. I never wanted to hear him say my name again. I fed off the chaotic energy in the room and pushed him across the room with my mind. He crashed into the picture hanging behind my couch and fell to the ground. There was a large crack in the wall where he landed.

I held him down in place and it seemed to come easy to me. I held a hand out with fingers spread, commanding him to stay on the ground. It was the same kind of dominating power I know he used over and over again on defenseless people. I hated the feeling it gave me, that undeniable feeling of control. But at the same time I relished in thought of being able to indefinitely hold him down. "What could you possibly say now Klaus? You've had all this time to confess. To tell me what you did—and you didn't. You kept it all to yourself." Curling my fingers into a fist I thought of crushing his skull. I knew I couldn't actually do it, so I forced him to imagine it was happening.

Sprawled out on the flower amongst the broken glass, Klaus gripped his head with both hands and cried out in agony. "Alex!" I felt the power and the energy churn inside of me. It was something I'd never felt before. And as I stood there controlling him I suddenly thought of Hope. I thought of how power seemed to consume her sometimes, how she had no one to help her with it. It were as if I was looking at myself through someone else's eyes and I hated what I saw. Because I saw him. I saw Klaus. In that moment I released him and crumpled to the floor against the wall. My head in my hands, crying.

I expected him to snap my neck or rip it clean off. I even partly expected him to just leave me there, but he didn't do any of those things. Instead he walked over to me, the cuts in his face already healed. I could sense him kneeling there in front of me, motionless. Still sobbing away into my own hands, I didn't bother looking up. But when I felt his hand gently land upon my shoulder I freaked out. "Don't touch me!" I screamed at him, my eyes finally fixing on something other than the inside of my eyelids. I stared him down. "Why are you still here? Get out!"

"If you'd just let me explain myself." He whispered.

"No!" I began angrily. "I resend my invitation to you—you are _not_ welcome here." I watched as he stood abruptly, trying to fight the overwhelming force to leave my apartment. But it took control and pushed him out. And finally I was alone. The tears didn't stop and the anger never left me, but I was alone.


End file.
